Misery: Those Cages Are for Them
by karivalentina
Summary: Kate and Sawyer are safely off the island. What will they do with their lives? They have lost so much already. Will they find comfort in each other? This is an ALTERNATE ENDING to a scene in chapter 2 of We Should Get Coffee Sometime, that works well as a stand alone one-shot.


**A/N: This fic is an alternate ending to a scene in the original story We Should Have Coffee Sometime. It is not intended as a replacement of the original.**

Misery: Those Cages Are for _Them_

**2008**

James and Kate sat on a bench by the monkey cages. Clementine, who had just turned six, stood up close watching the monkeys.

"She looks so happy, doesn't she?" Kate said.

"Yeah, she does. Hope Cassidy understands…"

"Listen…I'll talk to her, she'll come around." She said nonchalantly.

He looked at her funny. _Kate and Cassidy as friends._ He still had trouble wrapping his head around this. He wondered whether Cassidy knew about their Saturday visits.

"She listens to me" Kate insisted.

"Maybe she's done listenin' to ya?

"Don't be so negative" she rolled her eyes disapprovingly.

"Yeah, yeah….whatever you say" he chanted.

An older couple in their seventies sat beside them.

"Perfect day for the zoo" The older man smiled at James. "Not too warm, not too cool."

The older man and James made small talk about the weather; while Kate looked distractedly around her. She was lost in thought. Yet, her ears perked up at something James said.

"Not crazy about them cages…." James smirked. "Make me feel sort of claustrophobic…"

"Good thing those cages are for _them_," the woman chuckled.

Shortly afterwards, the couple went on their merry way as they waved good-bye.

Clementine was still standing up close to the monkey cages. James marveled at how beautiful she was. In the glare of the midday sun, her brown hair sported some streaks of blonde intertwined with the rest of her hair. There was no way he was going to miss out on being part of her life…not after everything he'd lost….

"Not all was pain and misery, you know" Kate suddenly stated, with a serious look on her face.

"_Misery_….darn it, Freckles…ain't that like the name of a darn book?" He grinned. "Well, well, well….wonder who wrote that one?" James paused for a particularly dramatic effect. "Oh, yeah that's right….isn't none other than the King of horror tales himself!"

Kate rolled her eyes. _Some things never change_, she thought.

After dropping his child off at her mother's at the end of the day, they picked up some Chinese take-out, and headed to his place. He lived alone in a small studio sized apartment with only the bare necessities. The only people he saw on a regular basis were Kate, and the guys at the U-Haul place where he worked. He had recently cut Miles out of his life. The guy just wouldn't stop harassing him about his drinking. _What's the big deal? Hitting the bottle on weekends was not a crime._

Every Saturday, for the last couple of months, Kate would show up at exactly 7:00 pm with some take- out food in tow. Then, they would wash down their food with some beer right and then have sex. Lastly, she would leave and disappear out of his life until the following Saturday.

They sat at the table across from one another and ate in silence. He was grateful for the fact that they hardly ever talked about anything important or even remotely uncomfortable. He knew she was depressed over losing Aaron, as Claire had decided to go back to Australia. But, did he really need to know what else was going on in her life? Similarly, he knew that Kate did not really want to hear him talk about Juliet. Yet sometimes, he would inadvertently mention her name. Kate would then glare at him. _At least, she doesn't mind my drinking_, he thought.

Their little trip to the zoo was an exception. They had talked more than usual since they had left the island five months ago.

That night, after they had sex, he turned to his side with his back to her. He murmured something about getting some sleep. Kate lay quietly on her side of the bed, until his breathing became steady. _He must be asleep now._

She got up and got dressed in the semi-darkness of the room. She looked at the alarm clock sitting on the night stand on his side of the bed. 12:39 A.M. She glanced at his face as she walked quietly out of his room. His eyes were closed.

He opened his eyes as soon as he knew that she was gone, and heard the door open and shut. His whole body relaxed. Now, he would finally get some sleep.

**Please review.**


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